Sending and automation
Create an automatic reply or group-addition rule
Recognize an incoming phrase and optionally reply, request to add its sender to a group, or do both.
Before you begin
Create and edit rules in Comfort or Console Pro. Have a connected number and working incoming-message integration. Group additions also require active access and permission to add members to the selected group. A trigger is the text condition that matches a rule.
What to do
- Open Auto-Responder in either layout and choose New Rule; use Edit on an existing rule to change it.
- Enter a descriptive rule name.
- Choose Contains for the reply example below. Contains finds text inside a message; Exact matches the complete trimmed message. Starts with matches its beginning; Regex uses a pattern and needs careful testing. For an optional group command, choose Exact and enter !grupo.
- Enter the phrase to recognize in Trigger.
- Enable Send a reply when you want an answer, then choose First response for one fixed answer. You may disable replies if Add sender to group is enabled.
- If replies are enabled, enter the answer in Responses. For a group-action acknowledgment, say that the request entered the queue rather than promising membership.
- For a reply-only rule, select the intended devices; an empty selection applies to all your account’s devices. To add the sender, enable Add sender to group, select one account and existing group, and check the target preview. This binds the rule to that one account.
- Set Priority from 0 to 100. Higher-priority matching rules are checked first.
- For a group action, review Commands from and the interval. Private chats only is the default; Group chats only or Private and group chats changes where the addition can be requested. Choose Create Rule, or Save when editing. New rules are active when created.
- Test from a separate number you control. For !grupo with Private chats only, send the command privately to the selected account. Open Group-action requests on the rule to see its filtered Groups > Additions history.
Worked example
Fictional examples: Workshop hours uses Contains with hours and a first response of We open Monday to Friday, 09:00–18:00. A separate rule uses Exact with !grupo, Add sender to group, the Support account and Test group, and Private chats only. Optionally enable Send a reply with Your request entered the queue. The second rule can also work with replies disabled.
How to check it worked
A reply-only test receives the prepared answer. A group-action test appears in Group-action requests with its acceptance reason and per-person outcome. A saved rule or acknowledgment alone does not prove the sender joined; look for Confirmed added in the history.
What to know
- Random chooses one saved response. All (sequential) sends all responses in order, but a matching message creates only one group-action request. Separate multiple responses with --- on a line of its own.
- The first applicable matching rule is used. Review overlapping higher-priority rules if the result differs from your expectation. Send a reply and Add sender to group are independent; at least one must be enabled, so action-only rules do not need response text.
- Commands from limits the group action, not the enabled reply. The rule may still reply to matching messages outside that chat scope on its selected account. STOP or an existing opt-out prevents the group action.
- An acknowledgment for the group action is sent only after the queue accepts the request. Queued is not Confirmed added; reply failures and actual addition results are separate. Repeated delivery of one message does not create another addition, and repeated commands can be blocked or combined with an existing request.
- Disabling the rule or its group action, deleting it, or changing its target, trigger or action scope cancels old undispatched work. It does not redirect old requests to the new group. A dispatched attempt may finish; history retains the account, group and rule settings used for that request. Re-enabling applies to new messages.
Common problems
- What you see
- No reply arrives.
- What to do
- Check the active switch, selected device, connection and trigger; ask support to check incoming events if needed.
- What to expect
- A qualifying test from another number receives the response.
- What you see
- The wrong rule answers.
- What to do
- Check higher-priority rules with overlapping triggers and narrow their scope or trigger.
- What to expect
- The intended rule is the first applicable match.
- What you see
- The group command replies, but no addition is confirmed.
- What to do
- Open Group-action requests and check acceptance, chat scope, target account, permission and the actual item result. Check opt-outs and resolve paused requests before resuming or selecting a retry.
- What to expect
- You distinguish a reply from queue acceptance and confirmed membership; privacy restrictions do not trigger an automatic private invitation.
Get more help
Use a separate test number; messages from your own connected devices may be ignored to prevent reply loops. Ask support to check the webhook, the connection that forwards incoming events, rather than changing server settings yourself.